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Thursday, May 8, 2025

The Family Battenberg and the gleefully distorted psychedelic rock assault of "Anteater" (Official Video)

 

"I'll keep tonguing your teeth / to get the gums underneath / a long way / follow your lead / 'till you take me / when you leave..."


The gleefully distorted psychedelic rock assault of "Anteater", by South Walian four-piece psych rock inclined Anteater, floods over you with surfy punk atmospheres and rattling hanging guitar power chords that float against barreling heavy bass and drum shuffle. I love the counter position between rolling thunder and what you know will be massive, and the back and forth. Not a quiet loud approach but a loud and louder approach. The kind of fuzzy haze is compelling as are the back of the room wailing vocals. I thought a little bit of OSEES when they were Thee Oh Sees (circa Floating Coffin) and I like that very much. 

LINER NOTES:

[This is an anti-love song. When unhealthy adoration becomes a quest for romance, or approval in this case, we find ourselves doing strange things. In this story, the protagonist justifies total metamorphosis in the name of subservience. “It’s self-humiliation in the pursuit of a potential suitor’s attention,” as frontman Eliot puts it.

Anyone that has seen this band live before is sure to recognise it from past set-lists. The group have played it as an unreleased track amongst their own shows and a host of major festivals, namely, Green Man 2023, Trans Musicales 2024, Reeperbahn 2024 and ESNS 2025. As budding up-comers, the group have also supported the likes of Getdown Services, Panic Shack, Gruff Rhys and the Bug Club.

Championed by Steve Lamacq, Amy Lame, Huw Stephens and Adam Walton, the group are already making their mark on the industry.]

"Anteater" possesses a sound that is so well suited for film because it sonically it feels like it creates it's own artful climate that borrow from different eras of psychedelia. At least I can feel the 70's UK monster psych rock as well as the American post grunge surfy punk saltiness, there are other seeds I feel, but suffice it to say, The Family Battenberg offer an evocative distillation.

-Robb Donker Curtius


THE FAMILY BATTENBERG LIVE DATES


May 10th: FOCUS Wales, Wrexham

May 16th: The Great Escape, Brighton

May 17th: Get Together Festival, Sheffield

July 17th: Zwarte Cross Festival,

July 26th: Le Pub, Newport

July 27th: LOW Festival, Benidorm

August 1st: Bootleg Social, Blackpool

Nov 7th: The Washington, Sheffield

Nov 8th: The Rat and Pigeon, Manchester










THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM 


https://open.spotify.com/artist/769i8WlIx04arCTdFaIvbd

https://www.instagram.com/thefamilybattenberg/

https://www.facebook.com/thefamilybattenberg/

https://thefamilybattenberg.bandcamp.com/


‘The Family Battenberg have perfected a filthy, fuzzy psychedelic sound that they’ve coined as “spider rock.” (The Face)

This track is an independent release by the South Walian four-piece. Written in just a day, it was recorded at Tom Rees’ (Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard) studio while he was on holiday. To master the recording the group sought out long-time collaborator Eddie Al-Shakarchi (Boy Azooga, Loathe, Swim Deep.)

Aligning with the soundscape that’s signature to them, ‘Anteater!’ is The Family Battenberg finessed. Drenched in fuzzy saturation, spacey vocals ricochet between a blistering guitar, all while a double-tracked mono drum plays like a call to action.

This is an anti-love song. When unhealthy adoration becomes a quest for romance, or approval in this case, we find ourselves doing strange things. In this story, the protagonist justifies total metamorphosis in the name of subservience. “It’s self-humiliation in the pursuit of a potential suitor’s attention,” as frontman Eliot puts it.

Anyone that has seen this band live before is sure to recognise it from past set-lists. The group have played it as an unreleased track amongst their own shows and a host of major festivals, namely, Green Man 2023, Trans Musicales 2024, Reeperbahn 2024 and ESNS 2025. As budding up-comers, the group have also supported the likes of Getdown Services, Panic Shack, Gruff Rhys and the Bug Club.

Championed by Steve Lamacq, Amy Lame, Huw Stephens and Adam Walton, the group are already making their mark on the industry.





The Family Battenberg , alt rock, garage rock, psych rock, psychedelic, post grunge, heavy rock, fuzzy distortions, surf psychedelia, "Anteater" (Official Video), massive sound, Wales UK,

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